Discover smart, secondary electric heating solutions for cosy corners and specific spaces in your home. This article will discuss smart heaters and other electric heating options that complement your central system when it needs a little help.
Electric Central Heating
Electric central heating offers a modern twist on a familiar concept. Instead of a gas boiler, an electric boiler uses electricity to heat water—imagine the workings of a kettle but on a grand scale. These systems are compact, whisper-quiet, and incredible space-savers as they eliminate the need for a flue or gas pipe, offering homeowners more flexibility in placement. The installation is a breeze when handled by a qualified electrician.
You can also choose an electric thermal storage boiler. It uses electricity to heat a well-insulated core that retains heat for extended periods. This stored heat is then transferred through radiators, underfloor heating, or even to a hot water tank. The latest models are equipped with smart technology, allowing them to charge during off-peak hours when electricity costs are lower. They can even be powered by solar panels.
Radiant Panels & Cove Heaters
Radiant heating, through radiant panels and cove heaters, can replicate the natural warmth of sunlight. Unlike traditional heating systems that crank up the room’s air temperature, radiant heating works under a different principle. When radiant panels or cove heaters are in action, they emit thermal radiation that directly warms the objects and people in a room, providing comfort without altering the air temperature around you.
Radiant panels integrate seamlessly into walls or ceilings, while cove heaters tuck neatly into the junction of wall and ceiling. They don’t just elevate room aesthetics; they offer a targeted heating experience. Some models deliver a more intense radiant heat than others, providing flexible options for different needs. Efficiency, targeted comfort, and a discreet design make radiant heating panels and cove heaters a smart pick if you want to enhance your indoor living or working space.
Space Heaters
Chasing the cold away from room to room is a breeze with space heaters. Unlike built-in heating systems, these moveable units allow you to direct extra heat exactly where you require it, ensuring comfort without overheating unused areas. This flexibility is their standout feature – just plug in and enjoy the coziness. They’re meant for wall outlets exclusively. That rules out extension cords or power strips, which may seem harmless but can lead to overloaded circuits and power outages.
Storage Heaters
With energy costs on the rise, it’s smart to consider all the heating options available. Storage heater uses ceramic or clay bricks to soak up electricity and store heat overnight when energy costs are at their lowest. Then, they release this stored heat gradually throughout the day to maintain a consistent temperature in your space. It’s efficient because it capitalises on tariffs like Economy 7 or Economy 10, designed to cut costs during specific off-peak hours, often between midnight and the early morning.
Not all storage heaters deliver the same output. Manual ones don’t give you much control over the heat they disperse, leading to energy waste and uncomfortably warm interiors. The best storage heaters have thermostats, fan-assist features, and smart technology to regulate heat release. Remember to check the specs for features like high-heat retention and intelligent charging systems, which further optimise energy use and cut down on costs.
Wall Heaters
Wall heaters stand out in convenience, ease of installation, space efficiency, and economical ownership. For a swift, uniform heat supply in those chilly spaces, they truly are a smart pick. These handy units combine a heating element with a fan to spread warm air efficiently throughout your space. They plug directly into your electrical system, just like baseboard heaters.
While the heating element works similarly to baseboards, wall heaters offer a key advantage: the fan. This fan circulates warm air, making rooms feel toasty quicker and keeping your energy costs down. Unlike baseboards with fixed heat output, wall heaters let you control the warmth with adjustable fan settings. Plus, their compact size frees up valuable floor space compared to baseboard heaters.
Baseboard Heaters
Baseboard heaters have long been recognised for their simplicity and cost-effectiveness when it comes to electric heating solutions. They’re mostly straightforward to install, relying on a hardwired connection to your electrical circuit. Plus, they operate on a simple principle.
Through a process of natural convection, these heaters take in cooler air and gently increase its temperature, resulting in an even and comfortable warmth that spreads quietly throughout the room.
While baseboard heaters often come with a lower installation price tag, remember that patience is key with these units—they take their time to warm up a space, and that can reflect in your energy bills if not managed correctly. Installation requires strategic thinking due to the space they demand—both against your walls and in your room layout. They need a good 12 inches of clearance, so you’ll need to keep furniture and other items at bay to allow for optimal airflow and efficiency.
Floor Heating
Radiant floor heating systems, installed beneath your floor, utilise electric cables, hydronic tubes, or heating mats to distribute heat upwards, efficiently warming a room from the ground up. Concrete floors pair especially well with this technology; they absorb and retain heat, acting like a thermal battery. This feature is ideal for leveraging time-of-use rates from electric companies, allowing you to warm up the floor during off-peak hours at a lower cost and relish the stored heat long after.
Installation requires time, investment, and a bit of sacrifice in ceiling height. The added layer reduces room height slightly due to the necessary insulation for safety.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps operate simply, yet ingeniously, by transferring heat. Just like household refrigerators work by moving heat out to keep the inside cold, heat pumps move heat where it’s needed, depending on the season. In cold months, they draw warmth from the air or ground outside into your home. When it’s warm, they do the opposite, moving indoor heat outside.
There are three primary types of heat pumps that you might consider—air-to-air, water source, and geothermal. Regardless of the type, all perform the same essential function: they collect heat from the environment (air, water, or ground) and amplify it indoors for heating or reverse the process to cool your space.
They use electricity to move heat, not generate it. This makes them much more efficient than traditional furnaces and air conditioners. Some systems combine a heat pump with a gas furnace in a dual-fuel setup. This lets the heat pump handle most of the work, but when temperatures plunge, the gas furnace kicks in for a reliable and cost-effective heating boost.
Most dual-fuel systems are two separate, space-saving units that share existing ductwork. Compared to traditional furnaces or solo heat pumps, this combo can be more economical, depending on your local fuel costs versus electricity rates.
Electric Heating Running Costs
On average, the price per kilowatt-hour for electricity is three times higher than gas.
In real-world terms, for a household comparing electric and gas heating, expenses incurred from electric heating could be twice as much as those from using gas. Yet, for households with storage heaters, time-of-use tariffs can offer some financial relief by capitalising on non-peak periods to reduce rates. The best storage heaters come with features like adaptive start and open window detection to optimise your energy use further.
Nevertheless, your final heating bill is not determined by energy prices alone. It is influenced by multiple factors, including your home’s insulation quality, size, regional location within the UK, and the efficiency of your heating system. It also depends on whether you generate any of your own electricity, say, via solar panels.
Solar panels can help you save on electric heating costs. Installing a 4kWp solar system on your roof could generate around 3,500kWh of electricity annually, depending on your location, which translates to roughly £1,190 in savings based on current Energy Price Guarantee prices. What’s more, pairing this system with an energy storage solution—like a rechargeable battery or an insulated heat storage tank—ensures not a single watt goes to waste. You can keep surplus energy to use on demand.
Electricity Tariffs for Electric Heating
Storage heaters pair perfectly with special electricity plans that offer cheaper rates at night. These plans are often called Economy 7 or Economy 10. Economy 7 gives you seven hours of discounted electricity overnight, while Economy 10 extends that deal with three additional hours of savings, usually in the afternoon.
To take advantage of these plans, you’ll need a specific meter, sometimes called a “white meter” in Scotland. It can help adjust your usage to cost-effective times without hassle.
Final Words
Electric central heating can be expensive without a renewable energy source. But you can use it with solar panels to offset electricity costs. Another smart option is to supplement your existing heating system with modern electric heaters for targeted warmth in specific areas. This approach can provide a more cost-effective and efficient way to stay warm.
